The Alberta government will announce today the names of all 13 members of a new panel to examine internal problems in the child welfare system.
Three experts will join opposition and government MLAs: Patti Laboucane-Benson, director of research and evaluation at Native Counselling Services of Alberta; Peter Choate, assistant professor of social work at Mount Royal University; and Bruce MacLaurin,a professor of social work at the University of Calgary,
A spokesman for Human Services, Aaron Manton, says all panel members, including the chair, will be named later today.
The committee was announced Dec.1 after intense pressure mounted on the government over the death of Serenity, a four-year-old girl who died while in kinship care in September 2016.
Serenity was emaciated and badly bruised when she died from a brain injury in September 2014. Medical records documented trauma to her genitals.
In an unprecedented show of unity, opposition parties called for the resignation of Human Services Minister Irfan Sabir after it was revealed the government didn’t give the RCMP an internal report into her case until the first week of December.
The government’s response to the crisis was to announce the formation of a panel to examine internal systems and suggest where improvements can be made.
Laboucane-Benson, Choate and MacLaurin have extensive backgrounds in child welfare and Indigenous issues.
LaBoucane-Benson has a PhD in Human Ecology focusing on the resilience of Aboriginal families. She has investigated or co-investigated a number of research projects within the Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. She also led the development and implementation of a healing program curriculum for Aboriginal offenders for Native Counselling Services of Alberta. a
Choate has a PhD in addictions and Master of Social Work. He has been a counsellor in clinical practice where he specializes in domestic violence and child protection issues. Choate has also been qualified as an expert witness for court cases in provinicial court and Court of Queen’s Bench.
MacLaurin has done extensive research on child welfare policies, and foster care. He is currently the lead investigator of a three-year study for the Alberta Centre for Child Family and Community Research looking at service outcomes for children and youth in the care system.